Georgia Power is building a large waste pond at Plant Scherer in Middle Georgia, right next to a coal ash pond.

The lined pond will hold gypsum waste. It’s a by-product that will be created when new scrubbers go online at the end of the year. The scrubbers are meant to remove sulfur dioxide that comes from burning coal to create electricity.

“The storage area itself is located on the plant site. It’s actually about 350 acres of land that was initially part of the Rum Creek Wildlife Management Area.”

More than 3,000 acres of wildlife area remains and is open for public use. Wilson says while they are able to remove mercury, sulfur dioxide and nitris oxide from their emissions there is still no way to control Co2.

Plant Scherer emits more carbon than any other power plant in the United States.